Kafunta

Kafunta is about 9km from the main road between Mfuwe Airport and the bridge. To get there take a left turn before the bridge, signposted to Kafunta, Kapani and other lodges. Then around where the tar ends (just before Kapani) you'll see a left turn signposted to Kafunta. Believe it or not, this is the main road that runs southwest outside the park and follows the river downstream. There are three left turns: one to the Wildlife Camp, one to Nkwali Camp, and the third to Kafunta. It's well signposted all the way.

Kafunta was opened in 1998. It stands beside the river and was built from scratch by a team including Ron and Anke Cowan, who now own and run the camp. Its central dining/bar area under a huge thatched roof is very impressive – built around a wild mango tree and closer in scope to a grand Zimbabwean lodge than a traditional Luangwa bushcamp. Half is a bar-cum-lounge, the other is for dining, and both sides overlook the river beyond a floodplain. There's lots of space and beside the bar is a small swimming pool, and nearby is a natural hot tub supplied by water from the local hot spring.

Kafunta's eight rooms are, as yet, unique in the Luangwa. They're thatched, square wooden chalets built about a metre off the ground on stilts. There's a large reed mat on the smooth wooden floor, and built on to the corner of each room is an en-suite tiled bathroom, containing a shower (hot and cold), wash basin and flushing toilet. The two three-quarter beds lie under a large, walk-in mosquito net. All the rooms have minibar/fridges, coffee makers and ceiling fans – powered by mains electricity. Their windows are gauzed and each chalet has a veranda overlooking the river. All are comfortable, spacious and airy, though their steps made me feel somehow 'separated' from the land around.

Activities from Kafunta centre around 4WD game drives (day and night) and walking safaris. Kafunta is only about 1.5km from the Nkwali Pontoon (an entrance to the park for safari operators' vehicles only), which makes access to the area south of Mfuwe very swift, but it's further from the Mfuwe Bridge.